PA NEWBIES but long time wannabee...

Date sort Score sort
DJ Bear

DJ Bear

Hatching
5 Years
May 17, 2014
6
0
7
Fayetteville,PA
It took 30 years, but she broke me down and finally got her chickens! This past week we are the caretakers for a flock of 7 egg layers. Buff Orfingtons, Rhode Island Reds, Black Austrolorp, Barred Plymouth Rock and a Easter Egger. OK, the last three I bought because we needed to have a segregated coop!
I had no idea there were so many sites dedicated to the life of chickens. It has given me a better respect for the chicken industry for sure.
Of course, no pressure to need a coop, which kind to build or buy. I did order one, but just got informed that it may be 3-4 weeks due to an error at the manufacturer. Sounds must like my job as a quality manager listening to suppliers cry they cannot meet the delivery requirements, never mind the quality of the parts.
So, do I tell them to stick it and build my own in the three weeks time I now have?
The boss also wanted a small garden and I came home to a 20 x 60 outline for a small plot(??) now filled with veggies and the like. My generous neighbor left his tiller for me to complete the task.
The coop should be a portable tractor type in my eyes to rotate around the garden perimeter, 4x5 house and a covered pen 8x4 attached run. Slant roof, 3 or 4 nest boxes, a wall that can open up to clean out the place and raised up 16" to give them some shade underneath. A couple of windows, a ramp to the yard, and make the yard detatch maybe too.
.....I am looking for ideas all over the web, so please don't be shy in giving advice. I am in sponge mode sucking up all knowledge of this new chicken life.
Cluck on!
 
Welcome to BYC
frow.gif
Glad you joined us! 30 Years?? Shame on you!
wink.png
Got to hand it to the boss, she doesn't give up, hey? Have you looked at the Learning Center yet? You'll find a lot of good "start-up" information there, including things like how much space to allow in the coop, how to deal with predators/disease, what to feed (or not) and much more. As for the coop, I'd say just build one. It will work out cheaper, you can design it to your (or rather the boss' tastes) and you'll have it ready when you want to (again, or rather when the boss decides), instead of having to rely on unreliable manufacturers. There are some wonderful designs to inspire you and the boss in the Coops section. Chicken breeds, if you haven't picked any yet, can be checked out in the Breeds section and yes, you can keep a few different breeds together.

We currently have a contest running for our new members, if you are interested. Rules and how to enter here:

https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/885886/welcome-to-byc-sign-up-and-win/0_30#post_13545369

Enjoy the site!
 
Welcome PA neighbor!
frow.gif
You won't regret giving into the boss! It didn't take me 30 yrs to convince my husband, only about 1 year, but he is a true convert! I sold my flock around Easter and I think he is more anxious than I to receive the new chicks in a few weeks. Misses those eggs! You also won't regret the work putting in a garden
wink.png
nothing beats homegrown!!!

If you look in the coop section up top, you'll find some very interesting reading complete with pictures-some of the members have been very descriptive with building how to's/ instructions. That sure gave us lots of ideas for our set up!
 
images


Welcome to BYC!

Eventually everyone caves to the love of chickens! They are so much fun to keep and interact with. People don't realize how sociable with humans they are, and how affectionate they can be. Sumi has left you with some really great links to follow. Definitely stop by our learning center for lots of good articles on getting started and raising your new flock.

I personally would build my own coop. I started with a prebuilt coop and I hated it. It was too small, the chickens hated it and they were all getting frost bite. But if you build your own, you can incorporate all those things these little coops don't have. My birds are so much happier in a coop we built for them. And, for the same money to purchase a coop, you can build a pretty big coop for the same price.

Good luck with what ever route you chose on the coop build and welcome to our flock!
 
Alright
welcome-byc.gif
great to have you joining the BYC flock
frow.gif





X 3 on the learning center
caf.gif





Some of our EE pullets who think the porch is better then the
coop to roost .....



Our Spangled Russian Orloff flock on a proper roost well close ...






Duckling's first day on the job so he needs to inspect the troops ....




Bob & Aflack snoozing in the noon sun ...
love.gif






Mingling of the troops
big_smile.png






Feeding time at the zoo
yesss.gif





Thy are fun to observe
wee.gif


















gander007
old.gif
 
Thanks to ALL of you! I have been in all the help and learning sections and feel comfortable spilling my guts....It is the bosses b'day tomorrow so we will get some boards from the local lumber mill and support the local economy.
The kids came over and have names chosen.
I did get a 20 mile bicycle ride in early, so life is still balanced and good...
Cluck on...
 
Coop has been built and the flock has taken up residence. It took five solid days to build it once we agreed on a plan. Chose one from Dimensional Concepts, but changed it by adding a hang off the back nesting box vs. a six pack of internal boxes. Twelve foot run, four feet high for eight feet and then four under the hen house. The roof is a cool barn red asphalt sheet product which I'd recommend for ease of install and looks like a steel one.
Boss is happy, but struggling to get them to use the house at night. I told her to lock them in it for a couple of days.
Might have to adjust the house door size. Plan had a 10 1/8" by 7 1/2". Can someone offer an alternate? We have RI Reds, Buff Orpingtons, Black Astralorps, Barred Rocks and an Easter Egger.
I will post pics once I figure how to get them uploaded from my iPhone
 

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom